Understand What Love Is
by ThefirstTevlek
Summary: This is a story not unheard of. Arnold returns to Hillwood for a visit and tries to figure out if he still likes Helga or not. At the same time Helga is losing her inspiration to write about him.
1. Fading Away, Full of Uncertainty

**Author's Drabble: Hello, I've deleted my last Hey Arnold fan fiction because I did very little research when I began it. So now I begin anew with a another version! No promises this will be finished but I'm just going to go with my gut and post what I write. I apologize for any typing errors or grammar problems someone may come across. For wanting to be a writer, I FAIL. xD**

**Please enjoy the story! We'll see what happens as the story unfolds.**

* * *

_Endless words and bottles of ink, I cannot stop writing of whom I think._

_Words that rhyme or words that ramble, there's nothing I can do but keep continuing._

_There is no style for this love of mine, only that it cannot be contained and must be released._

_So paper, release me, because to this day, I must contain my longing._

Helga stared at the words, glancing at her pen then dropping it on the notebook paper and shutting the journal over the mush she had scrawled and slouching in her chair. Phoebe glanced over at her from her position beside her at their shared lab table then back up front at Mr. Gerry. It was not unusual for Helga's thoughts to drift off whenever they were in class and her hands wonder for the notebook, but today it was the first time Helga had shut it with a sense of disappointment. That was not a good sign. Helga's love was drying up in a sense, her passions as a child fueled by the sight of Arnold on a daily basis. But with him in San Lorenzo ever since he discovered his parents with only a few visits in between…she had little to go off of these days.

Arnold wrote to his friends, this hasn't changed in the seven years since he left, for San Lorenzo, but Helga's letters were always the most impersonal. She could probably blame herself for this because she had never written him back as far as everyone knew. But Helga did write him back, she had seven binders of carefully preserved letters she had written to him. All of them loving, too loving for her to allow through postage. And so, she saved them, hoping for a time when she could write to him normally and the other letters could just be hers to cherish. But because of her not being able to mail her letters, Arnold's grew fewer and fewer. It was the lack of input from him that made Helga's passions seem to dwindle.

Loving Arnold was not hard, her memories were enough. But writing about him to herself was hard because all she had to go off when it came to describing him was from his last visit and that was a few years ago. Could he have changed since then? It seemed wrong to write about him and not even know what he looked like these days. It made the fiery words hard to throw down on paper. Which was why her writing seemed to become harder and harder to think of as any good now. Her only positive thoughts on her writing these days were for the story she was working on in secret. The story about a little girl who loved a little boy with a pure heart and soul. A story based on herself and her devotion to Arnold when they were children.

"Helga, are you alright?" Phoebe whispered once the teacher returned to his desk and the students were left to begin their assignments.

"Hm?"Helga glanced over at her, arching her eyebrow slightly over her right eye. "Oh, yeah I'm fine, Pheebs. Just Writer's Block, that's all."

"Miss Pataki, please refrain from talking in class." The teacher warned half-heartedly.

Helga gave a slight nod, folding her arms and slouching lower in her chair. Raising a hand she pulled the bill of her baseball cap down lower over her eyes and crossed her ankles underneath the table while closing her eyes to fake a nap until the bell rang. It was something to keep Phoebe from asking too many questions since her best friend knew she didn't like to be disturbed when she napped. But Helga couldn't sleep. She thought about her sorry attempt at a poem moments ago and how the words seemed to sound more and more lame the more she wrote them. It looked like she'd just have to work on the novel instead.

* * *

The heat was never as much of an issue as the humidity was, but it was something you got used to with time. Everyone on the campsite always sported sweat and tanned skin, tank tops, muscle shirts, shorts, sometimes no shirts at all. But they all coexisted like an extended family in the small cite. Miles and Stella had established a small settlement in this camp over the years, even before they were reunited with their son, Arnold. To this day the small family lived in the camp, working on assisting the green-eyed people whenever they needed them but these days—even with jungle living—the days were becoming routine.

"Arnold, can you get more lamp oil out of the storage tent for me?" Stella asked, checking the lantern she had been using.

"Sure," Arnold folded up the piece of paper he had been reading beside another light source and set it aside before scooting off of his cot and leaving the hut. The jungle nights were hardly much different than the days but the air did feel slightly cooler when he stepped out into. He approached the tent at a casual stride but when he stuck his hands in his pockets and watched where his feet fell on the damp soil, he started to feel his focus slipping. The letter he had gotten from Phoebe was mostly pleasantries but it was also concerning when he saw that she mentioned Helga. But Phoebe wasn't the only one who mentioned Helga in recent letter. Lila had written him about her as well and even Rhonda wrote a sentence about her. But the fact that the former fourth grade bully was mentioned in their letters and a few others with concern lacing the inked words made him worry about her.

Pushing aside the heavy canvas protecting the crates of supplies, Arnold looked through the contents of the boxes, shuffling through bottles and containers until he retrieved the desired lantern oil his mother asked for. Pulling it and tucking it in his arm, he left the tent but paused in front of the hut, sitting down on the rough porch. He set down the bottle next to him, removing his little baseball cap and running a hand through his hair. It had been a while since he had last seen his friends, Helga included, and the last time hadn't gone so well either. His last visit was years ago and it would take some time before he could afford another plane ticket to go back at the rate the funding was going. But the last time he went had been the one time he tried to act on what they had confessed when they were only ten years old.

Arnold remembered going back to Hillwood with high hopes of seeing everyone and messing around like he had on previous visits. But while he was there, he also spent more time with Helga than usual. His visits were usually long and they both never had much time to act on their previous confessions before, so, they tried to date. It was an attempt that failed the moment he revealed he had to return to San Lorenzo. He and Helga were only together for a month and a half before he had to return home again to his parents and the green-eyed people. Something that didn't allow a lot of getting along because he not only tried to fit in dating her but also seeing his friends and hanging out with them at the same time. Helga revealed that she felt it was unfair he was so dedicated to seeing everyone more than her. He tried to reason that he wanted to spend more time with her but he couldn't do two things at once in his limited amount of time.

With their disagreements getting more and more frequent the closer it came to his final departure, Arnold finally broke it off with her and returned to his parents after confirming they were better off as friends. But neither of them liked that idea, he knew it then just like he began to think now. Visits weren't enough time to show someone you cared about them. And Helga made the argument that if you're going to date someone, they come first in your mind, where as his friends had come to mind first in the days of their failed dating. Even now he wondered if he could hold Helga as his first priority if he were to try again. It didn't look possible since his parents had been the first people on his mind for seven years. He felt it wasn't enough time to shove them off as second priority now. He was only seventeen at this point after all.

"Arnold? Did you find the lamp oil?" Stella's voice called from inside of the hut.

"Yeah," he said quickly, jumping up and taking the oil inside. "Sorry…I got a little distracted."

Stella accepted the oil her son handed her but looked form the bottle to his rather distant face with a sense of worry. Even in the short amount of time she managed to see her son, Stella had the mother's intuition she should have had if she raised him like she should have. To this day she still regretted her lack of being there for her son and was eternally grateful for Miles' parents raising their boy, but she could say with confidence she had come to know her son rather well since he moved to the jungle with them. Apparently, Arnold's letters from his friends back in Hillwood were promoting another bout of homesickness. Something cured by sending him over for a mini break. But he always came back to them, waiting for the day all of them could move back together.

Unfortunately, she wasn't sure how long it would be before it could happen.

"Arnold, how much money have you saved since your last trip?" Stella asked, setting the bottle down on their warped table and resting her hand on it, bracing the other on her hip.

"I'm not sure." Arnold stated; glancing over at a box stuffed under his cot. "Maybe over three hundred by now but I'd have to re-count it."

"What if your father and I help you out and you can go back home for a little while?" Stella offered, "I know you miss your friends, Arnold. And recently you're not exactly into your work these days. Maybe you need some time in the city…you know, time to be a teenager."

"No, Mom. I'm fine." Arnold shook his head, "I mean, I miss being back home and everything, but I want to help out down here."

"Arnold, if you're worried about the green-eyed people they're fine. They're an ancient civilization that lasted for centuries. We helped them and they have helped us several times over, but sweetie, that's never stopped you from going on visits before. Does this have something to do with—"

"No!" Arnold said quickly, holding up his hands. "No, it's fine. It has nothing to do with Helga."

Stella smiled, "Arnold, you still like her, don't you?"

A violent blush spread across the teen's cheeks and he lowered his eyes to his boots. His mother approached him and enveloped him in a tender hug, stroking his unruly hair. It was hard to forget about someone you fell in love with, especially when their time together was so hectic the day their feelings were exposed. But Stella could understand Helga's side of the story as well. She heard Arnold's story when he came back from his last trip home. And Helga was right. The person you love has to be your first priority. That was Miles for her, though they have had their little spats every now and then as well. But Stella liked Helga, she met her while the kids were in the jungle and was reminded of herself in a way. She made threats at Eduardo plenty of times whenever he made suggestions for romantic spots for her and Miles in the past and also carried them out too, but Helga was more fiery in personality. She was a girl who could stand on her own but she also had a vulnerability that Stella pitied a little. Arnold mentioned her family life and she could only imagine her upbringing over the years.

"I don't know, Mom." Arnold finally admitted. "I think I do, but I never hear from her."

"Well, honey…if you can figure it out, whether your still like her or not, I think that will be the best time for you to return to Hillwood. I'm sure Miles would agree with me." Stella offered her son, resting her hand upon his shoulder. Arnold's confusion over his feelings was sweet, it was like something his father could have gone through with a crush. She'd be sure to hunt down that girl later if she ever found out her name…

Arnold said nothing and she coaxed him into a hug before returning to the lantern with the lamp oil and refilling it. Teenagers were never sure of what they wanted, but she was sure Arnold knew what he was doing. He was a mature kid for his age. He turned seventeen only last week but he had an old soul, aged to a glorious wisdom even when he was a child. If only she could have been around to see the wise little boy with the people of the city. What a marvel it would have been to watch him grow and change the lives of those around him for the better. Yes, Stella was proud of her baby…and she wanted him to be happy. Be it with Helga, or some other turn of events, little Arnold needed to be happy.

* * *

"That'll be four dollars and sixty three cents." Helga stated, reading off the illuminated green numbers on the register. Her hand braced on the counter and the other on her hip while she rolled a piece of gum around in the corner of her mouth.

"But the rack said 'four dollars!" Sid exclaimed, placing his hands on the edge of the counter.

"Look, I'm not in charge of pricing the stuff on the shelves, Sid." Helga said acidly, narrowing her eyes at him. "It's the way the tax system works, now pay the money or I'll charge you another fifty cents for my gum!"

"Hey, you can't talk to me like that, I'm a customer!"

"Yak, yak, yak." Helga glared at him, mimicking mouth movements with her hand before bracing it back on her hip. "I know you so store policy doesn't count for your sorry butt."

Glaring across the scanner at her, Sid fished around in his pocket then slammed the money down on the counter, sprinkling the change over the bills half-hazardly before snatching up his magazine and striding out of the door. Helga counted the bills and change, impressed he had slammed down the correct amount then stuffed it inside of the register. Helga glanced up at the rather empty super market a moment then leaned back against the wall boxing her into her cashier cabby. Folding her arms across her chest she smacked at her gum a moment, frowning at the loss of flavor and spitting it out into the small trashcan at her feet. Nudging it back into its space with her shoe, she stared off at the magazine rack; squinting at the distant names and focus catch phrases.

Once Helga had turned sixteen, she established that she needed to get out of the Pataki house and get a part-time job so that her returning home was put off as long as possible. Unfortunately, there were so many people staffed there, she often got sent home earlier than she would have liked because she was still in high school. Big Bob was against her initial idea but after figuring he could set her up at the beeper store, he offered up a job which she blatantly refused on the spot. The last thing she needed was to get sucked up into the world of beepers and cell phones. No, a cashier at the local supermarket was just fine and dandy enough for her. The supermarket was where she went most of her childhood to buy magazines and candy anyway. She even went crazy and bought a make-over magazine one time for a sleep over party.

Recalling how hard she tried to look "pretty" that night, Helga shuddered and shook her head to try and erase the image. Rhonda had finally shut up about her lack of care for her appearance. She was an awkward teen and she was proud of her awkwardness. Even at seventeen Helga was still waiting for her breasts to develop out of A's and she was a little disappointed in her lack of curves but at least no one could call her fat. Uni-brow still going strong, Helga held onto her old style of pigtails but she now wore a baseball cap on her head and abandoned the pink dress for jeans and t-shirts. Helga Pataki was still the good old tomboy she used to be, just taller and thinner. Woo hoo, the years haven't changed her much and she was starting to wonder if she had to do the changes herself. Would her twenties bring on the sex appeal she lacked?

A woman wheeled her cart towards the check-out and Helga straightened up, offering a slight smile that she certainly didn't dish out towards Sid earlier. It wasn't the friendliest look in the world but at least she was being polite to the woman as she scanned the products and slipped them into bags. Apparently she scared off all of the bag boys and now the only one who bagged outside of cashiers were stockers who could multitask. Well, at least the job could be done right instead of half-assed like some of those college kids tended to do.

"Did you see the football game last night?" an eager voice asked.

Helga nearly dropped the woman's change when she handed it over but regained her grip. The word "football" had been very sudden and she hadn't really been expecting small talk in the supermarket. Standing in aisle 3 were two pre-teen boys talking back and forth about the mentioned game but Helga was dwelling on the name of the sport more than their exchange. Football…as in football head? Oh God, Arnold! She forgot to think about Arnold! It felt almost like a sin to have let her mind be so empty since she arrived at work after school. She barely heard the woman say a polite goodbye and was more focused feeling the outline of the locket in her pocket with her fingertips. Resting another hand over he heart as it raced from the feel of the metal under denim, Helga sighed, feeling the familiar ache of the longing for her missing love. It had been so long since his last visit. Too long, she was beginning to lose focus now because of that time gap.

_You'd better come back before I forget what you look like now._ She thought, only able to picture his nine-year-old self housed in her pocketed locket. _Stupid football head._

* * *

**A/B: Well, there's the first chapter. Hope you enjoyed it. =D I'm working on the next one and hoping this story builds up as I go. So far we have Arnold and Helga to deal with but I think there will be another relationship problem or two along with just flat out Hillwood drama. Woot! But we'll see what happens.**


	2. Unfavorable Changes

**Author's Drabble:**

**Hello again, thank you guys so much for the comments, I appreciate them. For every review I get, the sooner I try to get out the second chapter so please continue giving me feedback!**

**I've read the reviews and so far it looks like everyone approves of my descriptions and characterization, which is awesome. And also, of course I kept Helga's uni-brow! Craig Bartlett has said that at fifteen Helga would have been an awkward teenager proud of her awkwardness and g-dang it I'm going to make that thing grow like the mighty oak until she hits her twenties if I have to! We've all been—or are currently—teenagers and we all know that we don't turn "smokin' hot" at fifteen or seventeen or any other "teen". So why would Helga? Long live Helga's uniqueness!**

**Okay, rambling is done. Please enjoy the story. 3**

* * *

"Gerald," Phoebe reached down and passed a hand over his fluffy hair. It had changed little since the time they were children but these days he wore it shorter and favored growing out a goatee more so than his hair. She smiled a little as his lips twitched and a protesting groan escaped his lips but she lightly poked his cheek, persisting in the task of waking him up. "Gerald, you need to wake now. Baskedball practice begins in fifteen minutes and thirty six seconds, you can't be late again."

The teen opened his eyes, frowning at the prospect of being awake but finding his head in Phoebe's lap was more than enough to compensate for the disappointment. Smiling up at her, he took her hand she had been stroking his hair with and kissed her palm. "I love it when you detail time like that. Whisper it to me again."

"Gerald, twenty-two seconds have passed since I stated the previous time. It would be inaccurate at this point to repeat it." Phoebe said, shaking her head at the idea of stating the wrong time.

"A guy can dream, can't he?" he asked, grasping the back of the park bench and hauling himself up into a sitting position and stretching his arms out over his head; arching his back. Relaxing again he slipped his arm around Pheobe's shoulders and pulled her against his side, smiling down at her. "Are you going to be watching the clock until I finish up?"

"As thrilling and possible as that may be to occur, unfortunately, I will be occupied with other matters. I have to study for the physics test approaching this coming Friday." Phoebe patted his hand holding her against him by the shoulder with a few finger strokes over his knuckles. "But I will be available for a phone call when you finish."

"Oh, then I'll have to take what I can get." Gerald shrugged, standing up and pulling her to her feet; wrapping his arms around her waist. "Well then, I'll see you later."

"Yes, until then, Gerald." She confirmed, returning his embrace before they released and Gerald took off at a sprint up the path towards the park gates.

"I swear, every time I see you two it's like some corny romance novel being spit up in front of me."

Phoebe turned, smiling at the sight of Helga leaning against the oak tree looming over the bench where she and Gerald had been sitting just then. Judging by the dark green apron hanging around her neck and a copy of Wrestling For Maniacs under her arm, she had just gotten off of work at the supermarket. Phoebe and Gerald often stopped in the park after school to just be a couple, sometimes resulting in him napping before he had to go to basketball practice and so on. Before Helga got her job she had often followed them for the sake of having company and avoiding her house but recently she has avoided them for the sake of not feeling like a third wheel. It was unfortunate she thought of herself that way but Helga would not take any pity from Phoebe or anyone.

"Have you finished your employment at the market for the day, Helga?" Phoebe asked, joining her hands behind her back.

"Yeah, manager sent me home when Travis showed up needing hours." Helga stated, indicating back the way she came with her thumb then sticking her hands in the pockets of her apron. "So, when I get my paycheck at the end of the week you want me to call the surgeon to separate you and Gerald from where you're joined at the hip and the two of us can catch a movie?"

"That would be wonderful, Helga. I'm certain Gerald will understand if I say I am going to spend time with you."

"Great." Helga sounded less than enthused but Phoebe knew that was how she expressed herself these days. "Lila might be coming along too, though I might revoke my invitation if she mentions bringing Stinky along again."

"Lila has only recently began dating Stinky, has she not?"

"Yeah, do you think that would stop her from trying to spend every waking moment with him? I swear, all you guys are like Siamese Twins when it comes to wanting to hang out with one of you individually." Helga slapped a hand to her forehead. She untied her apron and pulled it over her head, tossing the magazine into the trash before tossing her apron to drape over her left shoulder. "So mark it on your calendar this weekend. Movie with Helga, no Gerald, no lovey-dovey texting while we wait in line, no guys at all Mrs Johanson."

"H-Helga!"

"Well you might as well be since you two have been going out since we were in grade school!" Helga smirked, approaching Phoebe and draping an arm over her shoulders, coaxing her to move forward. "Come on, I'll walk you home. He wouldn't let me hear the end of it if anything happened to you on your way home."

"Thank you, Helga." Phoebe smiled, touched by the concern.

* * *

"Do you think that Arnold is swinging off of vines and jumping around trees like Tarzan now?" Sid asked, pulling his baseball hat back on after wiping the sweat from his face. Gerald arched an eyebrow at the question, folding his arms as he leaned back against the bench behind them in the gym bleachers.

"No, Curly's got that covered, Sid." He stated, "Arnold's no different than he was when he was down here, though he's probably speaking some ancient language we can't pronounce at this point."

"Yeah, he's mentioned talking to the natives in his letters." Sid nodded, "When are they going to try and get electricity down there anyway? I'm sure he'd be able to keep up with everybody a lot easier if he had internet out there."

"Sid, this is the jungle we're talking about. Getting power out there is like finding water in the desert. It ain't happening." He picked up his towel from around his shoulders and wiped off his face with a corner. "What brought Arnold up anyway?"

"Stinky wrote to him about how he finally asked Lila out and I guess I got motivated." Sid now shrugged, "But it's easy to think about Arnold. He did a lot of stuff and not just for me, but for everybody."

"Yeah, he was a bold kid." Gerald smiled, peering across the gym at his teammates playing an after-practice game while he and Sid had sat it out. "Still is. Helping out whoever he can find with a problem…too bad he can't fix up Helga though. Not from where he's at."

"Helga?" Sid leaned back to be on the same level as Gerald. "What's the matter with Helga?"

Gerald slung his towel back around his neck, "I don't know, man. Helga's not exactly the type to show what she's feeling these days. But you remember when Arnold tried to date her a few years ago?"

"Boy howdy, do I? The whole school was freaking out over how random it was for them to suddenly be dating like that. It came out of nowhere!"

Gerald nodded, "Yeah, but ever since they tried to date, she's been pretty out of it. I mean, this _is_ Helga G Pataki we are talking about. Apparently it's something to do with Arnold but I'm not sure what."

There was no telling Sid what was really on Gerald's mind when he mentioned Helga. Phoebe had been concerned about her best friend for years now because of her failed attempt at dating Arnold and apparently Helga had been wanting to for some time. Gerald had come across them kissing in the jungle over seven years ago when they were searching for Arnold's parents but figured Arnold knew what he was doing at the time. Gerald decided to be the voice of reason for his friend and remind him that it was Helga but Arnold was resolute that he had begun liking Helga. When Arnold likes a girl, he tries to make something happen. He tried with Ruth, he tried with Lila, and he was going to try with Helga one day. But when that time came, Arnold chose the wrong time to work on it. Even Gerald could admit his timing was off when it came to asking Helga to be his girlfriend.

But he couldn't say anything to Sid. The green cap-wearer couldn't keep a secret even if his life depended on it. So Gerald contemplated on it in his own mind. He would write Arnold about it again, letting his best friend know that he had left a mess of Helga and needed to do something to clean it up so that Phoebe would relax about Helga's distant attitude to those around them. What worried Phoebe worried him and it was very irritating to spend date nights antagonizing over the youngest Pataki. It felt like ages since he had managed to get a kiss out of Phoebe these days because she was self-conscious about her experiences outnumbering Helga's. Of course, Gerald did manage to accomplish something he didn't want to know if the former bully managed to do or not. What happened between him and Phoebe was between them, but he did smile to himself every now and then when he remembered what they did.

"Hey, Sid, Gerald, come on!" one of the guys shouted, tossing the ball at them. Gerald caught it with a casual sweep of his arm and tucked it under his arm; rising up and dropping his towel back onto the bleachers.

_I'll write to him when I get home. I need to get Phoebe's mind off of Helga all the time._ Gerald thought, dribbling the ball back onto the court. _Though she does look cute when she worries…_

_

* * *

_

Helga sat down in the floor of her closet, shutting the door behind her and leaning her back against it while staring across the small space at the empty wall revealed from her clothed being pushed aside. The step stool for the attic access was leaning against the wall but she wasn't interested in looking up there at her boxes of letters, journals, and poem books. Her idolatry of Arnold had been removed two years ago after losing the image of her changing beloved from her mind. For now she sat in the closet, remembering the old shrines depicting the child.

She had spent so long worshipping him that it was no change of pace when she went to San Lorenzo and ran into the Green-eyed people who respected Arnold as a deity just as much. For once she wasn't alone in bowing down to his image but the moment he was in their presence she reverted back to her former bullying glory. It was when the green-eyed people saw her shouting at him that they suddenly respected her as well, though not quite as much as Arnold. Maybe they were impressed that she could challenge their god without batting an eye or something, but the royal treatment had been awesome.

Reaching into her pocket, she pulled out her locket, staring at the old picture within the glass. Her lips trembled as she traced her finger over the shape of his head then pressed it to her heart before she felt the urge to cry at the sight of a lost memory. A month wasn't long enough to burn his image into her mind. He was thirteen or fourteen at the time after all, four years can change a person, right? If she knew this, she would have taken a picture of him while he was in town back then. Too late now, she missed her chance.

Pulling up her knees, she braced her elbows upon them, suspending the locket before her. The gold finish was wearing off from her constant nights of palming it and coddling it and the glass was scratched in several places, one of them from the teeth of Abner, Arnold's pet pig when he had stolen it from her. Inside of it the picture was fading, the photograph wrinkled from the times she had been caught in the rain or fell into bodies of water. It was time to get a new one but she was attached to the old one cradled in her palms. The thought of throwing it out drew a sigh out of her mouth and she tucked it away again, closing her eyes while letting her head thud against her closet door.

"Arnold, why is it that I must suffer the torment of losing sight of your face alone? There you are, thousands of miles away and you probably don't even remember my name! Which if you have I'll buy a ticket over there and beat your face in you jerkwad! And yet, the moment I find you again I'll probably cling to you and never want to let go because I would be too busy snorting up your hair and that unbelieveably shampoo that you use, which I have been reasearching the brand name and now keep a bottle of it in my drawer but that's beside the point. Oh, my love…why must love be such a torturing emotion and yet so wonderful at the same time?" She swooned, resting a hand over her heart.

"Helga" a knocking sounded on her bedroom door, drawing her out of her loving monologue. "Honey, your sister's play starts in an hour."

Groaning, Helga reached over her head and opened up the knob, letting her weight pull her back onto her bedroom floor where she laid, glaring at her bedroom door. "Fine, Miriam. Only you forgot that I'm not_ going_ to Olga's play." She said through her teeth.

"Oh, that's right." Miram's rather distracted voice said through the door. "Okay, well then we'll be going."

"Okay," Helga called, hearing her mother's footsteps trail off down the hall.

Miriam may have eased up on her smoothies a bit these days but that didn't stop her from having her lethargic days brought on from some form of stress. With Olga living with them again the meals were good but since she had given up her teaching career and decided to be an actress instead, Big Bob and Miriam have lost favor in their eldest to the point where both she and Helga were almost equals…almost. At least Helga's name was remembered these days. She still didn't want to be in the house whenever Olga was prancing around trying to brighten up everyone's lives and make the parents smile again. It was all peaches and cream until Bob lost his temper.

* * *

Two Weeks Later

* * *

"_Just hold me!" the nine year old cooed, holding out her arms for him and leaning in closer…closer…_

Arnold bolted upright in a harsh squeak of springs, his face sheathed in sweat and his hands gripping white-knuckled onto his sheet. God, that had been the most awkward moments of his childhood. Even after realizing he had liked her back in time, he still felt that Helga's rushed declaration of love for him was a bit too much for anyone to handle. But the fact that he even thought about it again was proof he really was thinking about Helga again. After focusing on work and being with his parents, he was able to push his affections into the back of his mind. It was unfair not to think of her, yes, but after their feelings failed to come to fruitation, he couldn't think about her as often as he normally would have. But recently he was certainly making up for it. And now he was dreaming of the night on the FTi building?

Wiping his brow, the teen pushed his blankets away, twisting around and resting his feet upon the floor. Across the hut his parents were still sleeping; undisturbed by his abrupt awakening. All of them were heavy sleepers normally, used to the sounds of the jungle just as Arnold had been used to the sounds of the city once upon a time. Staring at his bare feet, Arnold joined his hands and braced his elbows upon his thighs as he stared at the ground. He thought about the letters accumulating in the box he stored them in resting under his cot, the countless inked words that called him back to Hillwood and to the friends who missed him. But none of them were from Helga herself.

Maybe she didn't think about him either while he was gone…it seemed a little unfair that he would dwell on her memory now while she lived her life without caring if he was alive or dead.

Narrowing his eyes at the floor, he wondered why he assumed she would just forget him like that. Helga had been blindly devoted to him for ten years before he found out about it. Even now when everyone was mentioning her in their letters it sounded like Helga was still thinking about him. Maybe he was just being overly sure of himself, but if she liked him as much as she claimed to back in the day, she would still like him now, right? It was a lot to think about after just waking up but it always required a lot of thought whenever it came to Helga Pataki. She promoted deep thinking because of her desperation to keep herself an enigma to everyone. If she just came out and showed herself as she really was it wouldn't be so bad. Sure, she'd catch everyone off guard but they'd recover. He did in a few seconds after finding out she loved him so he knew it was possible.

Slipping his hand under his pillow, the teen withdrew an envelope, plucking out the letter from inside and unfolding it in the moonlight shining through the screened window. He saw Gerald's handwriting again, the words casually greeting him and asking about his well-being before shifting entirely into a whole new paragraph that was probably the source of his recent dreams. Of all the people he thought he would hear about Helga from, Gerald was one of the last ones. But he was dating Phoebe and she was still friends with Helga…and his letter pointed out that this was the only reason he was showing concern in the letter to begin with. He re-read the contents in the dim light, folding the letter back up soon afterwards and clutching the paper in his hands.

He must have sat there dwelling on the words for several minutes until he suddenly set the letter aside. Reaching underneath his cot he pulled out the metallic box he had been saving his money in and popped open the lid, narrowing his eyes at the accumulation of bills he had harvested over the years thanks to his odd jobs for the people in the nearest villages that resulted in modest payments he often refused but always ended up having to take home. He picked up the bills, shuffling them through his hands while counting up the numbers and converting the amount into American dollars. All the while he didn't notice the eyes watching him silently across the room from his parents who had managed to wake in time to see him in his thoughtful state. Miles glanced towards Stella and saw her smile a little over at him. He nodded carefully before the couple shut their eyes again, feigning sleep again.

* * *

"Rhonda, what are_ you_ doing here?"

"Nadine?" Rhonda shrank back from the corner she had been peering past. Her hands clung to the strap of her purse while her eyes averted from her friend's questioning stare. After a moment she straightened her shoulders, flipping some of her hair over her shoulder and bracing her once trembling hands upon her hips. "I'm doing nothing. Merely taking a rest on my power-walk home, is there something wrong with that?"

"No, but it's just a little strange that you would be power-walking home this way since you usually head in that direction." Nadine stated, pointing down the street, the opposite direction in which Rhonda had been looking.

"Well, I got a little turned around, that's all." Rhonda said defiantly, turning up her nose.

"Right, Rhonda." Nadine glanced across the street a moment then back to her long-time friend with serious doubt all over her face. "I'll see you at school."

Rhonda heaved a sigh of relief the moment Nadine walked away, slumping herself against the bricks of the old building before pressing her palms against the wall, craning her neck to peer back around the corner at the familiar Green Meats store. She could see the aging butcher pass in front of the windows and then the rounded employee who followed him with a box in his arms, both of them talking with some-what eager faces. The expression on the employee's face made her heart feel a little warmer, something a little unusual for her. Satisfied, the posh princess stepped out onto the sidewalk and headed in the true direction of her home, keeping her stride casual even though she had sprouted off she was "power walking" earlier. She fished bus fare out of her purse, pausing at the stop. No way would she try walking him in _these_ heels.

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**Author's Drabble:**

**Well, there's chapter two. I hope someone likes it.**

**Enjoy the little tid-bit where Rhonda seems to be stalking Harold? xD**


	3. At the Oddball Game

**Author's Drabble:**

**Please comment so I know people are reading this!**

**I love reading the feedback from everyone. =D**

**This chapter was kind of just thrown-together. But we catch a glimpse of Stinky and Lila's first date. Daw.**

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* * *

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"Helga, those shoes are atrocious! I mean…look at them! The heels are falling off!"

"Well, we can't all afford a new pair every week, Princess." Helga stated, picking up the bat where Eugene had tripped over it and bracing it on her shoulder.

This wasn't the first time Rhonda whined about her sorry state of dress, nor would it be the last since Helga wasn't planning on changing her ways anytime soon. But this time she could agree with her about her shoes being one sorry state. What had once been white sneakers perfect for playing baseball or whatever the guys threw at her on their sparse sports days, were now gray death traps. Just last week she had gathered three rocks in her shoes just from the half-attached soles kicking them up while she walked. The next thing she knew, she soaked her socks while walking home in the rain after missing the bus. But at least she could still find use in them. It wasn't the money that was a problem. Big Bob's Beepers & Electronics was still doing well, there were no real financial problems to speak of, but Helga was attached to the ones on her feet. She had bought them while she tried to date Arnold four years ago and to this day she hesitated whenever she thought about throwing them away. Sentimental value won-out every single time whenever their disposal was mentioned.

Rhonda rolled her eyes at Helga's remark, backing away from the home plate where she had just completed her return. She might have been wealthy enough to have a personal trainer to take care of all her fitness needs, but Lloyd was insistent that she could get her exercise playing ball with them and didn't need to waste the time calling up potential fitness experts. Helga thought it was all a bunch of horse puckey and she just wanted to hang out with the old gang like old times just as much as everyone else. It was Rhonda's weird way of showing she cared.

"Helga's up," Sid paled, fingering the ball while rotating the bill of his hat back so he could see. Since he had hit puberty, the shorter of the males thought it looked cooler to have his hat facing the right way but sometimes he hat to revert back to the childish position for occasions such as this. He was nervous because Helga's attitude only emerged on the field these days and he was a lousy pitcher by her standards. If he failed, he would suffer a lashing from her sharp tongue just like in the old days.

"Heads up, Sid." Helga called over with a smirk, swinging the bat around into position and bending her knees slightly.

Harold leaned over slightly, peering past Helga at Sid, nodding his head to show he was ready. Until the teams had to switch, he was stuck being the catcher until Helga could resume her position. Stinky called over some form of hick encouragement while Helga focused on the ball in the teen's hand; training her eyes to focus on it. Grinding the toe of her shoe into the dirt, she waited for the pitch, frowning when he seemed to be taking his sweet time. They should have sent Stinky up there since he threw the best of today's clumsily formed opposing team. Then again, Stinky had been a little too happy these days since he finally asked Lila to try going out with him. Too perky for her taste.

Winding up his arm, Sid grimaced and then let it fly and Helga smacked the ball away with a casual swing that cracked so much louder than the collision seemed to earn. She took off for first base, soles slapping against the bottoms of her feet and the ground in a clumsy chorus until she leapt onto first base just as the ball was pelted at Eugene, who cringed and threw up his glove only to be conked on the head. Helga turned around, hands on her hips to stare down at him, her eyes noticing the ball rolling further away from him and Iggy scrambling to pick it up. Figuring that she wouldn't make it to second base, she leaned over Eugene with her brow arched slightly.

"I'm okay," he said, waving a hand before sitting upright. She reached down and grasped his wrist, pulling him to his feet again. "Gee, thanks, Helga."

"Don't get mushy on me, Eugene. Just try to keep conscious for one game." Helga muttered, turning around again to face the pitcher's mound; bracing her hands on her hips. "Come on, we haven't got all day here, Sid!"

"Knock it off, Helga, I'm getting to it!" Sid shouted back, trying to regain some of that spine he had grown on the day he bought a magazine from her at her job. Seems he was losing it again now that there was no counter between them.

"Get to it faster!" Helga snapped, plucking the runaway ball from the ground where Iggy had kicked it accidentally with his foot and chucked it at him. "Crimeny…"

* * *

"Arnold, your mom and I think its best that you try to go back to Hillwood for a little while." Miles said; handing over the stack of bills he had been holding in his hands when he first sat down with Arnold. "It's…pretty obvious that you miss the city. I know how it is from personal experience. I grew up there and even though I love it out here, I miss it too."

"Dad," Arnold's eyes had widened when the money had been set into his stunned hands. The bills were damp with sweat, revealing Miles had been holding onto them for a while before finally approaching him. The money was probably a big part of the supply funds and he immediately wanted to hand it back. Looking back up to his father, Arnold's eyes turned reluctant and he handed them back over. "This is for supplies and the school, I can't take it. I have enough saved for the flights…but it will take a while before I can come back."

"That's why we're offering to help you, Arnold." Stella coaxed, standing beside her husband and resting a hand over his shoulder. "So that you can come back to us when you feel you need to. Your father and I won't be going anywhere."

"That's right, we're staying here until we are sure the green-eyes no longer need our help. Once the school is properly financed by the government, we should even be able to move back to the city. But until then, right now, you should go back and see your friends and grandparents." Miles gently pushed the money back towards his son, smiling at the teenager's reluctance to accept their offer. Like Stella, Miles was proud of his son in every way, though he didn't know as much about the whole Helga situation like his wife did. But she did manage to fill him in on a few tid-bits over the years.

"Are you sure?"

"If we were anymore sure, we would be chasing you out of here by now." Stella laughed. Her face turned more thoughtful soon after as she crouched before Arnold, taking his hand between hers. "Arnold, we'll be fine. Go on, take a break."

"It'd be nice to get away from this humidity anyway." Miles grinned, fanning at his sweaty neck as if to prove his point.

"This is what happens when you bring a city boy into the jungle." Stella joked, nodding back at her husband and earning a smile from Arnold.

His parents were insistent and he was homesick, true enough. Could they blame him for wanting to make sure they really wanted him to visit Hillwood again? Arnold spent seven years with his parents back in San Lorenzo, hoping he could eventually bring them back to the city and they could live together with his grandparents again. Over the years that hope died with his childhood and he accepted that they would stay in the jungle. But he did find hope in his father's mentioning of returning one day. But they were right, and the letters were urging him to listen to them in some sort of silent, conscience invading way. It wasn't just Helga he wanted to go back to and see if he could help her and himself, but his friends and relatives as well.

"Okay, I'll send Grandpa a letter in the morning." He finally stated, lifting his eyes to his parents. "But while I'm back in the city, can I try something?"

"Try what?" Miles and Stella asked in sync.

"Can I try to get my driver's license?"

* * *

"I'm ever so glad you invited me out here, Stinky." Lila said, looking around the rows of various plants and vegetables growing within the confinement of the high school green house. Stinky was the head of the Agricultural club and therefore had access to the greenhouses. It was the boldest move he had ever made in inviting Lila out that night onto the school grounds. She had been there to help build the greenhouse and set it up but with her part time job hours increasing, she had to quit the club and never got a chance to see the plants grow or come to fruitation. Hence, Stinky felt it was the best idea for the new couple's first date. A trip down memory lane even though it was barely over a month ago.

"I'm glad you like it, Miss Lila."

"Stinky, you don't have to call me 'Miss' Lila anymore…in view of the circumstances…" Lila smiled, her cheeks turning pink. "You can just call me, Lila."

"Gawsh, I didn't think of it that way." He turned a little red as well, though his cheeks were a deeper hue than Lila's had been. "Okie dokie then, Lila."

The gangly teenager could have sworn the greenhouse hadn't felt this warm before as he lightly pulled at the collar of his t-shirt. The late October evening had been a lot cooler than the humid greenhouse and he thought it would have been a welcomed change in climate until he realized his own embarrassment and nerves. Being alone with Lila was a new experience for him after all. It had taken him months to finally work up the courage to ask her to at least date him and she accepted. Now everyone suspected they were an official couple even though their first date didn't happen until tonight.

Bringing around the basket Lila had promised to take with her to meet him with, the red head smiled up at her date, earning a bashful returned grin before she set it down upon the soil and opened the lid. Stinky removed his jacket, laying it on the ground. "You can sit on this so that your pants don't get dirty." He offered, plopping onto the dirt and folding his long legs up Indian style while Lila sat upon the coat, returning to the basket. She pulled out a couple of Yahoo sodas and then a few sandwiches on a paper plate that she rest on the lid of the basket. It may not have been the most elegant dinner most couples would have wanted to have on their first date, but they weren't a couple. Even if they were, their tastes were rather simple and required nothing really fancy in order to enjoy themselves.

"Stinky," Lila handed him a soda.

"Yeah?" he took it, eyeing her cautiously.

"This was ever so sweet of you." She smiled, pulling her long ponytail over her shoulder and picking up a sandwich. Smiling over at him, she took a bite, Stinky found himself smiling as well, opening his soda but nearly missing his mouth when he moved to take the first swig. Giggling, Lila leaned over and lightly kissed the teenager's cheek. Stinky stared ahead, his lips quivering as his smile turned dream-like and he raised the soda again for a drink; only to pour the contents over his shoulder and into the dirt.

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**And there you go.**

**No more until I get reviews!  
**


	4. Home is Where the Crazy is

**Author's Drabble:**

**Once again, thank you very much for the reviews you guys. 3 I enjoyed reading every single one of them.**

**It is because of the reviews that I am posting this chapter. I apologize if it was not worth waiting for but I've been a bit distracted recently. Suddenly developing a social life outside of work does that to people xD But I hope this will be a nice tid-bit to keep you reading until I come up with something more enjoyable to read. We're getting closer to the reunion between Helga and Arnold but will it be all sparkling backgrounds and teary eyes? We'll find out...  
**

* * *

"Boy howdy, you turned out to be some romantic, Stinky." Sid snickered, trying to stifle it with his hand.

"Well I thought it was a good idea." Stinky muttered, scratching the back of his head and averting his eyes.

"Relax, Stinky." Gerald stated; nudging him with his elbow. "I think it was a good idea to take her to the greenhouse. It's something you're both comfortable in, and it has sentimental value to her. Sid here just doesn't put much thought into his own date spots."

Gerald eyed Sid disapprovingly, shaking his head slightly before turning back to Stinky, looping an arm around the taller male's shoulders while urging him to walk forward. "So tell me, anything good happen in there?"

"Well, we had ourselves a nice picnic." Stinky said, looking up at the ceiling while walking along. "We gabbed a little and also…Miss Lila gave me a smooch right on this here cheek." He pointed at the spot as if her kiss was still there, grinning with dreamy eyes at the memory. "Of course, that was before I spilled my Yahoo soda all over the dirt and got my pants wet from sitting in it…I reckon she thinks I'm a dang fool by now."

"You got at kiss though," Gerald smirked, "That's still pretty good, Stinky."

"More than you've gotten from any other date you had." Sid chimed in.

"Sid, it's the only date he's had." Gerald pointed out bluntly. He turned back to Stinky, offering a smile up at him. "So, you gonna ask her out again?"

"Gawsh, Gerald. I don't know. I mean, what in the heck am I supposed to do now?"

"Do you really want to ask Gerald that question?" Sid asked, indicating the other teen with a thumb. "He's been going out with the same girl since the sixth grade."

Gerald folded his arms across his chest, tilting up his chin at Sid with a brow slightly raised. There was no shame in his long term relationship with Phoebe. He may have prided himself as a ladies' man at one point but that didn't mean he was getting tired of Phoebe Heyerdahl. No way. Sid just had nothing else to mock because his own love life has been all over the place and all of them ended in failures. At one point Stinky encouraged him to try dating Nadine, but Sid refused due to some petty excuse. Gerald wasn't sure he could even remember what it was anymore.

"Sid, I'd shut my mouth if I were you." Gerald stated, hardly angry, just sympathetic that the boy had to pick at everyone else's relationships to make his own lack of one feel better in his eyes. "Come on guys; let's head back to the cafeteria before the bell rings."

* * *

"Did you finish your phone calls?" Stella asked, handing over Arnold's backpack containing some of his things.

"Yeah, there were a few people who needed the phone so I only managed to get a hold of Grandpa and Gerald but I think that might turn out for the best." Arnold stated, slipping the straps over his shoulders.

Stella and Miles stood with smiles but it was obvious the two of them were missing their boy already and Arnold could see it in their eyes the entire time they had been waiting at the airfield for the plane that would transfer him to American soil. It took three flight transfers to get to Hillwood again, but they were worth the mad dashes from terminal to terminal in the end if it meant he could go home. It was just a shame that his parents couldn't go back with him this visit either. He approached them and jumped when his parents flung their arms around him in tight, spine-snapping hugs. He tried to wriggle his arms around them but they had been pinned to his sides.

"We'll miss you, Arnold." Miles said, sounding a little emotional.

"Write to us as soon as you're settled in, okay?" Stella asked; her voice motherly and tender. A voice Arnold was growing used to but didn't appreciate any less.

"I will." He rasped, cuing them that they had to release him so that he could breathe.

They exchanged sorry expressions while he caught his breath, smiling at them once he managed to choke down some oxygen. With a small wave, he picked up his suitcase and carried it over to the ramp leading up to the plane. He loaded up his things after being prompted by a worker and went inside, sitting down among the sparsely populated cabin. Leaning closer to the window, he peered out at the jungle beyond the walls of the little airfield and thought about the camp site where archeologists were still digging up artifacts, the local natives were being taught in the school his parents helped establish, and the friends he had made while staying there were carrying on with life. And then he looked at his parents standing side by side several yards from the plane.

Miles stood with his arm around Stella's waist; his eyes were streaming tears while Stella looked pretty close to crying as well. Arnold could imagine she would be comforting his dad once the plane took off. His father was always the more emotional of the two. He smiled at them, though they probably wouldn't have seen it from the distance they stood. Reaching over, Arnold touched his fingertips to the window, thinking about how this felt more like he had been leaving them for good. It was just a visit. His visits usually took a while, yes, but he always came back, didn't he?

The engines rumbled and roared to life and he glanced at the propellers spinning around until the blades were mere blurs. Flicking his eyes back to his parents, he watched them until the plane shuddered and began to roll forward. He pressed his nose against the glass, straining to catch one more glimpse of them before the plane turned away and hid them from his sight. Sighing, he leaned back into his seat, closing his eyes while butterflies fluttered about in his stomach. The plane lifted off and he opened his eyes again, his ears aching with the need to pop.

_Home…_

* * *

"Well, Phoebe, you took your sweet time in getting here." Helga stated; her hands braced on her hips when her best friend came running up the sidewalk. She staggered to a halt and caught her breath before straightening back up and smiling apologetically at Helga.

"W-Would you prefer I not tell you my reason for being late?" she asked, a little breathless still.

"If it has anything to do with Gerald then no." Helga frowned. "You couldn't go one day without hearing from him, could you?"

"I'm sorry, Helga."

"Don't sweat it Phebs." She smiled a little, "Come on, the movie's going to start whether our butts are in the seats or not."

As Phoebe followed Helga to pay for a ticket and head inside, she smiled to herself. She had good reason for being late to the movie theater. They had made plans to have a night together, yes, but when Gerald called he was ecstatic and the news he gave was exciting indeed. Phoebe almost hoped Helga would ask her why she was late but then the secret would have been out and that would have disappointed Gerald. Of course, she couldn't do that. But he had been so excited to hear from Arnold that he called her to tell her about it after swearing her to secrecy.

Arnold was coming for a visit.

Phoebe thought about it while she and Helga sat in the darkness of the theater, watching the movie previews before the actual film would start. She joined her hands together in her lap, looking up at the screen but thinking in the back of her mind what Arnold would be doing visiting them now all of a sudden. She thought about Gerald missing him, Helga missing him, and the discussions between neighbors of the football-headed kid who had saved the neighborhood once upon a time. Arnold was practically a legend on these streets. All before he had even turned ten years old…

Phoebe snuck a peek over at Helga slouching in her seat with her arms across her chest. Her eyes were on the film and she looked disinterested. It had been hard on Helga when she had broken up with Arnold. After loving him for so long, she had been giddy behind closed doors when she and Arnold dated. Phoebe remembered it well, but she also remembered the arguments the two had. He hadn't given her all of his time after she pined for it for years and then she refused to go with him to meet his friends whenever he asked her to come along. Helga had been stubborn at the time and Phoebe didn't blame her for wanting the attention. She earned it in her opinion. But even though they broke it off, Helga was still crazy about him.

Crazy about Arnold wasn't the issue. It was Helga's apparent lack of emotion whenever she was in public that worried Phoebe. If Arnold were to try and talk their relationship over with her, maybe she would regain those emotions all the time and not just on the field or with her. Arnold was Helga's light source in her lifetime of darkness, if you wanted to be poetic about it. Though it would take some time to get the two to converse civilly after their history, Phoebe was certain something good would come out of making them talk. The question was; would Arnold even want to talk to her to begin with?

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**A/D: And that's it for this round. Will think up of further thickening the plot soon!**

**REVIEW OR THIS DOESN'T CONTINUE!  
**


	5. Remembering and Returning

**Author's Drabble:**

**Okay, so, Arnold's returning in this chapter. YAY! But is his return completely welcomed by everyone?**

**Also, I need to clear this up. Harold Berman was 13 years old when he was in 4th grade with Arnold and the gang. We know this because he had his bar mitzvah and that is a Jewish coming of age ceremony held when a male turns 13.**** That would make him in his twenties now so he's not a teen like everyone else and is no longer in high school after managing to make some progress on his grades. He got his GED and left school soon after everyone started high school. Now that I cleared that up, here is chapter 5.**

**I hope you like it!  
**

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"You know, I really think it's about time everyone stopped thinking I was some sap who crawled into the fetal position in bed and never left my room since Arnold left." Helga stated, glaring at Phoebe a moment and seeing the utter shame in her face before looking at Lila sitting across from them. While Phoebe was looking every bit sorry for bringing up Arnold during this 'girl's only lunch hour' of theirs, Lila was unashamed of mentioning the name and making sure to sound as careful as possible while saying it. "Sheesh, out with it, Lila! Why'd you bring up football head?"

Lila finished braiding her hair into a long, fat tail hanging over her shoulder and tied it off with her ribbon. She took her time whenever she worked on her hair, unlike Helga, who rarely tried anything different from pigtails since pre-school. Of course, she did try a few times in the past...times that would not be thought of again. The former country girl leaned forward, resting her hands on the edge of the table. It was sometimes a wonder how she ever became friends with this girl, though she had to admit, it was hard not to like this ball of innocence. Heck, even Phoebe was more hostile than Lila ever could be.

"Well, to be just perfectly honest, Helga…you have been acting ever so strange since Arnold returned to his parents after his last visit."

"I'm afraid she is right, Helga." Phoebe chimed in, holding up an index finger. "You have been rather anomalous these last four years."

"You hardly ever express yourself, Helga." Lila said, taking over the lead again. "We hardly see a reaction out of you anymore. And even though I am pleased to see you not being as confrontational as before and no longer starting fights, it's just not what I would have expected to have happened so abruptly."

"Well, you're the one who pretty much gave me the life-coaching session back in grade school, Lila." Helga reminded, sitting up a little more in her chair. "You said that I should avoid bossing and being a jerk to everyone, so I am. Got a problem now that I'm actually following your advice?"

"No, Helga." Lila said; a little shocked. "Not at all, I just hoped you wouldn't cut yourself off from people ever so abruptly as you have. The only time we know it's really you is when we're playing in the old vacant lot. And those days are growing much fewer and fewer."

Well, it wasn't her fault everyone was running off to make-out under trees and stuff these days rather than get some "fresh" air and swing the old bat around every once in a while. Sure, they were in high school and everyone would be going off the college soon but that was even more of a reason why they should have all stuck together rather than worrying about relationships so much! Helga thought of this now, yes. But she should have thought of this four years ago when Arnold was wanting to spend time with the gang rather than date her. Her realization was late but now she knew why it had mattered so much to see the guys or go to another one of Rhonda's parties. Sue her, she was younger and in love. She still was but wouldn't be admitting that out loud anytime soon.

"So, you guys think I am being anti-social because Arnold's not around?" The two nodded in sync and Helga hung her head. Lifting it back up, she braced her elbows on the table and peered from one face to the other. "Look you two, there's nothing wrong with me. I'm just not in the mood to deal with people all the time. Life isn't exactly all sunshine and roses at the Pataki abode and school's dull since I've gotten used to the nut-jobs we go to class with. I grew up out of bossing people around, that's kid stuff. And right now, I need to get back to work."

Pushing away from the table, Helga stood up while Lila and Phoebe stared at her with solemn eyes. Their expressions only made her face sour even more. Frowning at both of them, she fished the money for her half-eaten burger and fries and slapped it on the table, pulling her apron from where it had been draped over the back of her chair. Swinging the article up over her shoulder, Helga strode out of the diner and made her way back up the block towards the supermarket without a second glance. It was possible the two were still staring where she had left seconds ago.

The further she walked, the slower her pace seemed to grow until she was eventually stopping altogether. Stepping off to the side of the pavement, she leaned against the bricks of the shop she had been passing, closing her eyes as she heaved a sigh. Her lack of motivation was really beginning to show without her muse being near to her. In her heart but not within her reach was the hardest part of clinging to her passionate poetry. Every day felt like she had lost him for another year and those would only grow in number now. It was scary thinking that your affections could one day splutter out like a candle left in the wind. A once burning flame that was her love now felt like a spark that kept struggling to inhale that oxygen to make it fire. But she had no source…she had no air to breathe without Arnold.

"Maybe that's why I don't really feel anything." She mumbled, opening her eyes. "Maybe the writing and I weren't meant to be…like me and him in the first place. Arnold's never going to come back and I'll just have to accept it...yeah…that's sounding pretty bleak. No wonder they're freaked out."

* * *

"We, uh, kept it just the way you left it, Shortman." Phil said, opening up the door and switching on the lights. Arnold stared past the elder man into the room he had known as a child. It hadn't changed since his last visit when they had painted the walls blue just in case his grandparents ever re-considered renting the old room to someone. It was touching to him that they didn't have the heart to give it up after having him with them for so long. Of course, Arnold's grandma probably didn't even notice his absence.

Carrying his suitcase up the rest of the stairs, he entered the room, setting his things beside the door while noticing the bare mattress on the panel where he had always slept. It had been stripped of all sheets and all of the shelves were barren of anything personal. The room felt sterile to him, impersonal without him or his friends in it to fill it up with life again. Old memories were already filling him to the brim with nostalgia as he crossed and sat down on the mattress while his grandfather watched with a small smile.

"You need any help with the unpacking?" Grandpa asked.

"No thanks, Grandpa." Arnold shook his head, offering a careful smile back. "I'll take care of it."

"Well, okay then." He shrugged, "If you need me, I'll be around."

Arnold's eyes followed his grandfather as he left the room; closing the door behind him. The sudden lack of his grandparent left Arnold alone to take in the familiar but almost alien surroundings. It was quiet for the most part. The sounds of the city were faint, muffled by the walls. He thought about the sounds of the jungle back with his parents and how he had fallen asleep, wishing for at least one car alarm before slipping away. Back home in the Sunset Arms, he would have it. That thought alone should have made him a little happier but for some reason he was completely solemn and uncertain of his decision to visit.

"Four years is a long time." He sighed, flopping back on the mattress. "I wonder how much everyone has changed."

* * *

Harold folded over the corner of the paper, sticking it down with the familiar Green Meats sticker onto the edges to hold them down before passing it across the counter to Mrs. Harris. Mr. Green watched from where he was stocking the show cooler, smiling a little to himself before resuming his work. It was old hat seeing Harold around ever since he hired him officially back when the kid turned fifteen. Now that he was in his twenties, the kid had established that being a butcher was the life for him and so he hired him. Harold had graduated school by now since he had put a little effort into his studies and already several years older than his classmates; he was now established as an adult. It was because Harold was an adult that Mr. Green felt he could entrust Green Meats to him someday. But that was only an idea. The two hardly flinched the moment the bell rang when another customer entered but when Harold lifted his head to greet them, his eyebrow raised in surprise at who was standing there.

"Rhonda?" he nearly dropped the cloth he had been wiping his hands with.

The posh high school student glanced from Harold to Mr. Green then tilted back her head a bit with all the confidence she normally radiated. "Hello, Harold. I'm here to pick up cook's order of lamb chops. She only buys them from Green Meats because we only accept the finest quality back home."

Harold was hardly fazed by her prim attitude and turned to go get the mentioned order but Mr. Green waved a hand, heading towards the back. "Don't worry about it, Harold. I'll grab them."

Rhonda's face grew a little pale and Harold swallowed but simply nodded. He knew better than to contradict his boss these days. Even so, he wasn't sure if he wanted to be alone with Rhonda Wellington Lloyd. Ever since he left high school and got his GED, he had felt too old to socialize with his old friends sometimes. Especially now that he was over twenty one…and Rhonda…she was only seventeen. It was illegal for him to like her the way he did. And she probably didn't give a damn about him in the end, making him feel even worse for practically lusting after the teenager.

"So, h-how's life as a butcher?" Rhonda asked, averting her eyes but keeping her head up.

"Oh, it's fine." Harold said quickly. "I'm still having a hard time convincing Mr. Green I can run the shop on my own sometimes but he probably doesn't think I'm…old enough…" Mentioning his age seemed to remind him of the age of the person he was talking to and his words gradually grew quiet. At one time he denied Rhonda because he was a kid and thought crushes were annoying but now that he was all for it, he was too late and too old. Five years was a big age difference to begin with as kids, being an adult only seemed to widen the gap.

"That's good," Rhonda fiddled with her bracelet a moment then braced her hands on her hips. "Well, he's certainly taking his time, isn't he?"

"Sorry about that." Harold eased away from the counter. "I'll go check on him."

"Wait!" Harold paused, glancing back over his shoulder at her. It was the first time Rhonda looked out of sorts since he could remember. Her hand was still hovering in the air where she threw it up to stop him and the strap of her purse slipped down to the elbow, the bag dangling side to side. Her eyes were wide, almost as if she were scared when he met them. The teenager lowered her arm while correcting the strap at the same time, trying to smile as if nothing had happened when she stated, "Here he is."

The squeak of the swinging door behind him signaled Mr. Green's return and he twisted around, moving towards the doors. "Excuse me—I—I need to make more sausage links!" Harold said, shoving open the doors again and stepping into the back room, sighing in relief now that he was out of Rhonda's presence. The years had been kind to her. She was model quality in her eyes and he had to agree, though Harold felt that even though Rhonda was spoiled and rather prissy, he liked her. And that was bad…very bad.

* * *

There was an awkward silence when Gerald opened his front door on that Wednesday morning to see an ancient green automobile sitting outside of the Johansen family home. He shut the door behind him and stepped down onto the stoop; crossing his arms when he spotted the teenager emerging from behind the wheel and coming around the front of the vehicle. The two boys stared at one another, one standing still on the stoop while the other stood leaning slightly against the side of the old Packard.

"Just get your license?"

"Yeah, yesterday after I talked Grandpa into taking me to the revenue office."

Gerald nodded his head a little before his lips split into a wide grin and he descended the rest of the stairs, extending an arm that the blond eagerly met with a firm slapping of hands before their fingers curled together with thumbs extended. Their signature handshake passed and Gerald pulled his old friend into him with a firm slap on the back while maintaining a hold of his other hand. Arnold took a shaken breath from the strength of the clap on his back before they parted and Arnold stepped away from the car, indicating with his thumb.

"I thought I'd drive you to school," Arnold smiled, sticking his hands into his pockets. "Unless you'd rather ride the bus with Phoebe…"

"Phoebe already knows you're in town." Gerald shrugged, "She'll figure it out if I don't show up at the bus stop."

He felt a little ashamed to be blowing off his own girlfriend for a ride from his best friend. Phoebe was a smart girl though, she would understand if he didn't ride the bus with her. Heck, with her brain power, she probably already knew Arnold had stopped by his house at this point. That girl was sharp, another trait he absolutely adored about his petite girlfriend, aside from all her other prospects. He climbed into the car and Arnold joined him on the driver's side, the blond working with the keys to coax the old engine to life.

"It's good to see you, man." Gerald said, nudging Arnold with his shoulder once the engine turned over on the second try. "We were all wondering when you'd show up again."

"You knew I would be visiting, Gerald." Arnold reminded him.

"Yeah, I knew…doesn't mean everybody else did."

The smirk that curved his lips passed on to Arnold and he pulled the car onto the road with a smooth turn of the wheel. Even for being a beast with a whiney motor, the Packard was still running decently. Perhaps the result of Arnold and his Grandpa fixing it up in the past or maybe even the night before. Gerald could only guess what it was that kept the car running while Arnold coaxed it along the road with a steady hand. For just learning how to drive, the boy handled it pretty well. Gerald could admit it was pretty smooth of a ride even in morning traffic to get to the high school.

"So, why the interest in getting your license?" Gerald asked, leaning back in the seat, "I don't see you needing it for jungle living…"

"I wanted to be able to drive myself whenever I visit. I wasn't old enough the last time so I thought now would have been best." Arnold explained, pulling into the school parking lot and parking the vehicle. The engine spluttered when he turned it off and Gerald arched an eyebrow at the sound; glancing over at him. Arnold smiled and gave the steering wheel a pat. "We need to change a few parts."

"Mm hmm…" Gerald looked skeptical while he unfastened his seatbelt and the two climbed out of the car. "Just curious, Arnold, but are you sure you're ready for everyone to see that you're in town?"

"Should I have waited until after school?" Arnold appeared genuinely troubled by this.

"I don't know, but if you're going to go in, you'd better do it now before everyone gets here." Gerald said, glancing up at the clock on the front of the building. He indicated the double doors ahead and the two began to walk quickly towards them. "Have you talked to anyone at the school about you being here?"

"No, this is probably why I shouldn't have shown up in the morning. I guess I was just excited to see everyone and didn't think about it."

The bashful expression on Arnold's face made Gerald smile to himself and he patted the teen on the shoulder, leading him up the steps and ushering him into the building. "Just get inside. You can get out of here once the bells start ringing."

The two wondered down the main hallway, a pattern of green and yellowed tiles at their feet with the traditional forest green lockers cluttering the walls. The halls were not completely deserted but the few students meandering about hardly blinked an eye at Arnold since none had been members of their class in the past. Gerald thought he saw recognition in the eyes of a male student by the drinking fountain but he eventually lowered his eyes and focused on the water spilling out of the mouthpiece.

"Most of the gang arrives all at once," Gerald offered, opening up his locker with a quick bang on the door to loosen the bent latch. "But I think you're only going to have to worry about Helga's reaction the most. You're going to get it when she sees you."

"Why do you think that?" Arnold asked, though he already knew.

The front doors opened and the boys turned their heads, watching clusters of students walk inside. Arnold thought he would have problems recognizing any of his former classmates but it was like he had seen these faces yesterday. They were older, though not much different from their fresh teen years. The first people he saw were Sid and Stinky moseying through the doors. Stinky was a little pink in the cheeks while he conversed with his friend but Sid was grinning broadly with glee. Gerald smirked, believing he already knew what the two were babbling about but Arnold must have been at a loss.

"Stinky, Sid!" he called over, slamming his locker door and leaning against it.

The teens looked his way at the same time and their eyes fell on Arnold beside him. In two seconds they were both gawking, all former expressions gone. "Wilikers, is that you, Arnold?" Stinky asked, striding forward a few steps.

"Arnold? When in the world did you get here?" Sid asked, sounding astounded as he started to grin. The boys assembled in front of the two all smiles and eager greetings that Arnold politely returned with all modesty and short sentences. Apparently he was saving the conversation for later because of the timing of these reunions.

"I see Arnold has arrived as prompted in his letter." Phoebe's small voice spoke up and Gerald pushed Sid aside to let her slip in between him and the lockers. Johanson slipped his arm around her waist and pulled her to his side once she was clear of the other bodies and Arnold glanced at them with obvious intrigue. Apparently he didn't know that they were all for public displays of affection. If he wasn't sure by now, Gerald was happy to give a demonstration of how much he liked his girl.

"Hey, Phoebe." Arnold greeted, smiling at her as she pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose and tucked her books against the side that wasn't against Gerald. "How are your exams going?"

"I am getting along very well in my college courses at the local city university. It was intriguing to know that I would be able to get in while still completing my high school education. I am quite pleased with the results." She said with a bright smile that still looked rather meek on her even though it was a sure sign of excitement for her. Gerald thought about kissing her anyway, proof of public affection or not, but he held back, settling for running his thumb against her waist.

"Oh my God, is that—" the tone was almost valley girl, had she not sounded more stuck up than the stereotypes would have been. Gerald knew who it was without looking but since Arnold was the type to make eye contact, he was turning to see Rhonda Lloyd standing beside him. One would think she would tower over the guy with the thickness of her heels that morning but Arnold was winning the tall battle by a few inches still. At least the boy hit his growth spurt while he was gone. "Arnold, darling! I had no idea you would be in town!"

Arnold smiled politely, "Sorry Rhonda. I kinda wanted it to be a surprise."

"And surprised we are, Arnold." Nadine appeared beside her, her previously wild braids gone and replaced with her blond hair waving down her back. "Hey, do you think I could ask you a few questions about the kinds of insects you have seen in San Lorenzo since we last talked? I'm still working on my documentary and I'm dying to find out how the—"

"—and we'll get back to bugs 411 later, Nadine." Rhonda interrupted, holding up a hand.

Gerald glanced up towards the front doors again and nudged Arnold's arm, earning the boy's questioning gaze. He nodded his head forward. "Helga's here. Watch her reaction once she sees you."

As if on cue, Helga shuffled to her locker a few doors up and worked with the dial, glancing over in their direction. It was routine for her to look his way since Phoebe would always be there with him in the mornings. He knew the lockers would be a safe bet for her to see Arnold at. Gerald glanced at his best friend and saw instant soberness. His whole body looked stiff for some reason and he turned his head back to Helga to see her own reaction. The girl was staring their way, wide-eyed and utterly frozen as well.

"See man? I told you she would freak when she saw that--" Gerald whispered, though his words died as Helga suddenly recovered, her eyes lowering and her routine neutral expression returned while she opened up her locker and shoved her things inside, pulling out her books and slamming the door shut. Within a few strides, she walked right past the group without a second glance their way. It was then that Gerald realized that the group all had their eyes on the Pataki, all watching her reaction just as eagerly as he had.

"That's funny, " Stinky suddenly broke the silence. "I thought Helga would at least try to say "hi" to Arnold or something."

"Me too, Stinky." Gerald confirmed, glancing at Arnold's face, which seemed to be a little more solemn than before. "Me too…"

* * *

**Author's Drabble:**

**So, that's it. Helga's reaction is not what ANYONE expected but what was Arnold thinking when he too saw that she appeared undisturbed by his return?**

**We'll find out next time if you guys want to know. 3  
**


	6. Unresolved Feelings

**Author's Drabble:**

**Hello everyone, sorry this came so late. I haven't really been able to think up of much to get the ball rolling on this plot. As I said in the beginning (I think) there is no real plot to this story, more like a collection of thoughts tried to be written up together into a way that makes sense. I apologize if this was not worth waiting for. Please review anyway!  
**

* * *

"Well that was weird." Arnold stated rather bluntly, sitting on the bench while the others were wrapping up basketball practice. He had returned to the school once Gerald called the boarding house to give the "a-okay" that school was out but even eight hours later Arnold was still a little pre-occupied by the memory of the lack of reaction from Helga. After all of the letters and hints of her missing him or maybe thinking about him it was a real wake-up call to see her casually walk past as if he wasn't even there.

"You okay?" Gerald plopped down next to him, rubbing at the sheen of sweat across his forehead with a towel.

"Hm, yeah." The blond glanced up at his friend. "Uh, where's Sid?"

"He's putting up the balls today; some of the guys are helping him out." Gerald smirked, "Coach didn't like how he kept watching the girls in the last game rather than focusing on the ball like the rest of us. So now he's gotta pick up after practice until the season ends."

"But that's months away, isn't it?"

Gerald's eyebrow raised, "And your point is?"

Arnold shook his head then looked out at the golden coloring of the gym floor, catching the vague shadows of the team meandering about to collect their things. He felt the eyes on them quickly though, smiling a little to himself as he looked back at Gerald who was still staring questionably at him. It was obvious Gerald caught on that Arnold was a little dazed and he wasn't surprised, he hadn't really been able to grasp the fact that he was really in the presence of his old friends again and yet it had been so casual to speak with them. Hillwood felt like a dream and he kept waiting for himself to wake up in the humid jungles of San Lorenzo again.

Hillwood was cool, crisp from the aging autumn atmosphere. It was during fall and winter that made the city air the most tolerable compared to the traces of gas and other smells in the air. Inside of the gym he couldn't tell the difference but after being outside in the brisk atmosphere, Arnold almost wished he hadn't bothered with a jacket. The coolness had felt good on his face and he even rolled up the sleeves of his sweater many times while taking walks along the sidewalks of his old neighborhood. Walking was all he seemed to do since he came back the other day before getting his driver's license. Even then the car sat safe in the garage until this morning.

"Gerald…"

"Yeah?"

"Did you and Phoebe…ever take a break?"

"A what?" Gerald's eyes widened, he then stared at Arnold, puzzled by the inquiry.

"You know, a break…" Arnold slouched a little, finding the question a little degrading since it looks like he already knew the answer. "Did you ever feel like you wanted to see other people or something?"

"Does this have to do with Helga?"

Arnold gave no answer, only stared at the floor with his hands on his knees.

"Phoebe and I've been going out since we were kids pretty much," Gerald said, leaning back until he was against the row behind him. "Sure, we have days where she'll get mad because I missed her karate event or something but I've never really thought about anyone else. As many girls as I thought were hot when we were kids, I'm a one woman kind of guy."

"You really like her, don't you?"

"You really want to make me look like a sap in front of the team?" Gerald asked flatly, indicating the other males lingering in the gym with his thumb.

"Sorry, Gerald. I guess I'm just trying to figure out what I'm feeling, that's all." Arnold crossed his arms, frowning at the floor. "I liked Helga a lot, but after living with my parents for a while, I kind of just forgot about it for a while. I know that sounds kind of heartless, but I didn't really think about her until a while ago since the letters started coming in."

"So everyone's been rubbing Helga in your face, myself included. But you have no idea if you still like her or not."

Again, Arnold was quiet as he shrank back to lean against the bleachers as well, his toes lingering on the gym flooring. He stared ahead, the thoughts running through his mind a lot slower than before, one image at a time now as he debated over it and tried to figure out an answer. Even if he found it, and he did still love Helga somehow, what good would it do when she didn't seem to feel that way about him anymore? The idea that he could love her for the rest of his life while she hated him for the rest of hers was rather bleak in his mind. Sad for him…because then he would have to deal with the same problem she did when they were kids and he would feel the same pain.

* * *

"Helga, your mom said you haven't come home yet. Just where could you be?"

"I'm fine, _Lila_. I'm just taking a walk. I don't have work today and I don't want to go home so just stop calling by my house." Helga hissed into the mouthpiece of her cell, "Now go do your own job or text Stinky or something, I'm busy!"

To prove she was done speaking, Helga hung up the phone and jammed it back into her pocket before sinking onto the toilet lid, pulling up her legs until she hugged them to her chest. She bent in her head until it pressed against her knees and the pressure of her compressed against herself made her abdomen ache but she held herself in. The English hall's girl's bathroom had become her refuge ever since the bell rang. She had chased off Phoebe long ago when her bespectacled pal was lingering outside of her stall and quietly trying to coax her out. Eventually Helga told her to leave and she thankfully obeyed but now Lila was trying to find her.

Lifting her head, Helga glared at the chipped paint of the stall door. "I wouldn't be in this state if someone had told me sooner that Arnold was coming back." She growled, banging her fist into the side panel wielding the toilet paper with a loud crash. Had she checked, she would have seen the small dent left under her fist but she held her position, staring at an oblong-shaped patch of metal revealed by the paint. The image that came to mind made her lips tremble and her eyes sting with the blissful memory of what she had seen so briefly that very morning.

Short no more, Arnold was not a giant but he had grown gracefully in the last four years. From her brief glance she had absorbed every inch of him, her eyes had been thirsting for it for so long they took that one sip and managed a gulp instead. He was probably a few inches taller than her now, his hair still untamed by time or gravity and his little blue hat still placed not quite in the center of his head. He wasn't muscled, like most men from the jungle tended to be and she couldn't tell in the first place since he was clad in late fall garb; regrettably preventing any kind of rating of muscle tonnage. He hardly looked any more tan than the last she saw of him either. Then again her memory of that one month together was hardly something she could count on. But even though she only saw his tall, lanky frame from afar, he was beautiful! Weird-shaped head and all!

"Cruel world, why must you mock me by dangling love's sweetest form right before my eyes?" She whimpered, staring up at the ceiling and clutching at her heart. "I see what I want and yet I cower away, averting my eyes from my golden-haired angel."

Her face suddenly went slack then while her hands froze still grasping her t-shirt. After a second, Helga reached down and pulled her backpack into her lap, pulling out a notebook and fishing for her pen blindly while trying to open up to a fresh page. With the first ball-point in hand she rest the notebook in her lap and smiled at the familiar pale blue lines while scribbling down the first words that floated into her head. It wasn't until she reached the bottom of the page that she was smiling to herself. Dropping the pen she clasped her hands together and looked to the ceiling again only this time more grateful.

"My muse has returned! Oh, Arnold had you not shown up with nary a whisper of your return I would run to you now, my darling and embrace you until the force of my devotion snaps your frail little spine!" She pressed her joined hands against her cheek before snapping to and lowering them slowly to her lap again while staring at the metal spot she had found earlier. "But, alas, I have already shunned you in the hall. My behavior was that of a foolish coward…I was…I was just a little kid again."

* * *

"Ronda?"

"Arnold?"

"Why are you down here?"

"Down where?"

"Um, in this alley…"

Rhonda looked from the curious eyes of Arnold to the skeptical stare of Gerald, both of them standing at the mouth of said alleyway. She stood erect even though she was nervous as hell while grasping her purse tightly in her hands, her thoughts in a mess when she tried to think about a good excuse for her presence in the alley. A lie about her purse almost being nabbed wouldn't have worked since they would have heard her screaming if she were attacked. Before she could think up of something, Gerald spoke up again and she silently hoped he would provide something to make them leave but fate was never that kind.

"Hey Arnold, you go ahead and get what you can from her but I'm headin' home. We'll talk later, alright?"

"Yeah, see you later, Gerald." Arnold nodded as his friend turned away and headed back down the sidewalk.

Rhonda swallowed when the male then turned back to her, slipping a pair of car keys into his pocket while fixing her with a stare that was more penetrating than Gerald's had been previously. She groaned, covering her face with her hands. Of all the people to find her! But wait, this was a good thing wasn't it? This was Arnold in front of her. A guy who is known for helping people out in the past and was only a visitor in town, no real threat to her social status should she leave him with this burden she had been carrying since God knows when. Perfect, she could just tell Arnold about it, get his totally fab advice from him, then throw him a welcome home party to show that she was grateful and not to mention be able to keep him quiet because she was oh-so kind and celebrated his return with everyone in the proper method! Brilliant deduction Rhonda, well done!

"Alright, Rhonda, I'm listening." Arnold stated, folding his arms with slightly narrowed eyes while still blocking her path.

"I know this looks and seems awkward, and it is, but Arnold—I have a very good reason for being here." Rhonda said, a little nervous even though she concluded it was safe to tell Arnold. Tugging at the collar of her Givenchy sweater and crossing her arms over her chest, clinging to her forearms. "Actually, Arnold, I have no idea why I'm here in an alley not three feet from Green Meats."

Arnold glanced at the store she named out loud with a questionable glance then turned his head back to her. "Do you need to talk to Mr. Green about something?"

"Oh yes, I need to have an _engaging_ conversation with Mr. Green and his positively _stimulating _company—no!" Rhonda snapped, cutting off her sarcastic reply with a hiss. "Let's just say…I have business with Harold."

"Harold?" Arnold repeated, his resolution turning to confusion again. "Harold Berman?"

"Yes, if you want to get down to the details, yes, I need to talk to Harold." Rhonda said, her hands beginning to tremble until she clamped her fingers down harder on her bag. "Since he dropped out of high school we haven't really been able to talk and it just seems wrong that someone from my past would just suddenly want to drop out of contact with me. I mean, what could he benefit from not talking to me anymore?"

Arnold's face fell to one that quite plainly asked: "Are you serious?" and she didn't quite like it but after a moment she finally heaved a sigh. Reaching over, she grasped his collar and pulled him into the alley with her. The teen's shock was soon attempted to be vocalized but she slapped her hand over his mouth and shushed him frantically. Lowering her hand again, she clung to his shoulders, staring at him in a sudden panic since her attempt to trick him had failed. "Rhonda what are you—"

"Shhh!" she tightened her grip a little more, glancing back out into the street then back at him. "Arnold, I am behaving like a pathetic stalker! " She cried in a breathless whisper, "Ever since Harold dropped out of school he's been avoiding everyone, including me! It's driving me crazy that I can't just see him as often as I used to. Right now, I'm at the point where I try to make it over to this neighborhood daily to at least see him in the windows of that disgusting butcher's shop. I make up excuses to pick up meat orders so I can hear his voice, whether he is handing the order to me, personally, or calling out to Mr. Green from the back. I find his crooked tooth adorable, his cluelessness endearing, and I barely even mind the fact that he's pudgy! What about any of this that I'm saying makes sense, Arnold?"

Arnold reached up, taking hold of her wrists and trying to pull her hands off his shoulders but he tried to keep calm in the process. "It sounds like you like him, Rhonda."

She paled, "What?"

"That's what it sounds like." Arnold said nodding a little, not wanting to mention that he had heard of this kind of stalking before. "You come all the way over across town just to see him even though the high school is on the other side of the city, you find him attractive, you appreciate who he is and it doesn't bother you what sort of physical state he's in though it seems like it normally would bother you. To me, it just sounds like you like him and you just don't know how to handle that emotion."

This wasn't happening. Was Arnold really going to stand there and tell Rhonda Wellington Lloyd, the most popular and—not to mention—most stylish girl in the whole school since she was four that she liked Harold Berman. The next thing he was going to tell her was that she and Curly Gamelthorp were soul mates and should totally hook up sooner than later, right? Rhonda's face grew pale as she released Arnold after his gentle tugging and leaned against the wall, staring at her shoes. She let her purse slide off her shoulder, catching the strap in her hand. Even though she had been denying it, the whole thing seemed to make sense in the end. She actually knew that this was the reason. She did adore Harold. She had since grade school, though it never came out in the open. Her crush only seemed to grow more unstable when he quit school.

"You should talk to him."

Rhonda gasped, stepping away from Arnold, "Talk to him? Arnold, I haven't had a single conversation with him not related to how much a lump of meat is since who knows when! What can I talk about because I'm sure he won't want to hear about Armani's fall line?"

"Okay, don't talk to him now," Arnold said, holding up his hands as if to defend himself from her lunacy, "But you should try, even if it's just asking how he's been…it's something we both need to try."

Rhonda raised an eyebrow at his final addition to his words. His voice had grown quieter then as if she was not meant to hear it. Puzzled, Rhonda avoided it and thought about the day she would try to talk to Harold face to face and not with a meat counter between them. It was too distant to envision the words they would exchange but the hope was there. Now that someone had figured out she was falling for the apprentice butcher, she felt a little better about her obsessive stalking. She straightened up, pulling her strap back onto her shoulder and meeting Arnold's eyes confidently even though she still felt shaken.

"Thank you, Arnold." She patted his shoulder a moment before her face lit up with a pre-thought up 'ah-ha' moment. "You know what? I should throw a party for you."

Arnold now seemed to be a little embarrassed now as he shook his head. "A party for me? No, no…I just now got back into town and I'm still trying to meet up with everyone."

"Then a party is just what you need! I'll invite everyone we used to hang out with to it so that you can meet all of your old acquaintances and maybe before your visit is over we can introduce you to some new ones. It's settled, I'll work on making up the invitations tonight when I get home." Rhonda smiled, passing Arnold and walking out onto the sidewalk. "I'll call your house when I get everything settled!"

Turning her back on a speechless Arnold, Rhonda glanced discretely over at the butcher shop, her eyes lingering on a shadow behind the glass before she strode away. A small smile settled on her lips, knowing she had managed to let out her secret without losing her status at the same time. Arnold was no tattle-tale. Besides, his presence in town was limited, who could he tell?

* * *

"Popular today, aren't you, Shortman?"

"What?" Arnold glanced up from the book he had settled in his lap.

Phil held up the phone, "Some girl is calling you, didn't ask for her name but she's asking for you. You don't waste any time, do you?"

"Must be Rhonda," he sighed, setting the book aside and rising from the couch. He took the phone from his grandfather, ignoring the wink the old man gave him. The attempt to not notice the wink failed though the moment Phil left the room for Arnold's cheeks soon felt warmer than before as he put the phone to his ear. "Hello?"

"Hey, football head, how's it going?"

Arnold jumped, his eyes widening as he clung to the receiver, "Helga?"

* * *

**Author's Drabble:**

**So, yeah...the Helga monologues were never my forte. To me when I was a kid, I always thought Helga's monologues were whatever mush popped up into her head at the time. They kind of made me embarrased as a kid as well. xD So I tried, please don't hate me if people seem out of character here. I've not written for them for days and I lost most of my muse during that time.**

**PLEASE REVIEW!  
**


	7. Let's Review the Facts

Author's Note:

I'm sorry about my long absence from this fan fiction.

I did warn everyone in the beginning that this would progress with reviews and whenever inspiration struck me.

After so long I was re-reading this story and decided to post the last chapter I had worked on since drifting away from this project.

Hopefully someone will find this short chapter amusing and maybe I can move on to Arnold and Helga's official reunion...hopefully.

* * *

_**Arnold**_

* * *

"Boy, you're a sharp one." Helga's sarcasm dripped through the phone, "Yes, it's me."

"How…How have you been?" Arnold asked, leaning against the wall; pressing his shoulder into the wallpaper. The pressure seemed to be a sort of guarantee that he was actually awake and talking to Helga for the first time in years. Yes, he was , but she was making it sound as if they had never stopped, something he was grateful for, if not a little disappointed since he half-expected an awkward conversation with her.

"Everything's just peaches and cream over here, football head. Got a job, keeping up with school, trying not to go crazy whenever Olga tries to drag me to one of her plays…nothing to complain too much about. What about you? Are ya swinging from trees and talking to the local wildlife yet?"

"I don't swing through trees, Helga." He stated flatly, feeling as if someone had assumed this before.

"You know I'm just messing with you. But listen up, okay? Tonight I'm coming by your house so we can play catch up like you've been doing with everyone else. You can do that, can't you?"

Arnold rotated until he had his back against the wall. "Yeah, that'd be great, Helga…but can I ask you something?"

"Shoot."

"If you wanted to talk tonight, why didn't you just say something when I was at the school this morning?"

There was silence on the other end of the phone for a minute and Arnold's hand tightened a little on the grip when he heard a soft thud on the other end of the line. He waited a little longer, wondering if he should see if she was even on the line anymore when he heard Helga's hurried voice that was a note higher than it had been before. "Oh, you were here this morning? Must've not seen you, I was in a hurry. No offense, Arnold, but I've got business to do other than stand around gabbing in the hallways on weekday mornings. When Phoebe told me you were here I thought I'd give you a call since I missed spotting you this morning."

"I see," Arnold doubted what she said, she had seen him this morning. They had made direct eye contact when she had looked up at him and her face had appeared stricken before she had turned away. "Then, how did you know I have already talked to everyone else?"

A loud clatter made Arnold jump, he stared ahead, unable to figure out what the sound was this time when he heard a few grumbled words and fumbling hands. Helga returned with rushed words that made Arnold smile when he found out that he had caught her on her lie. "I've got stuff to do, I'll see you later, football head." With that he heard the click of her hanging up and the dial tone that proved she had cut off their conversation. Smiling to himself, Arnold hung up the phone, his fingers lingering on the handset.

"See you."

* * *

**_Helga_**

* * *

Helga stared straight ahead, her hand releasing the cell phone and letting it drop to the trophy room floorboards. The distinct clatter shook her out of her shock and she reached for the phone but her foot kicked it across the flooring. Cursing to herself, she dove for the phone and fumbled to get her hands back on it. Holding it up to her ear she scrambled her brain for something to say to him. Swallowing her nerved, she propped herself up on her elbows, leaning her mouth towards the speaker.

"I've got stuff to do, I'll see you later, football head." She snapped, pressing the power button until the unit shut off. Dropping it back to the paneling, Helga flopped back down face-first onto the floor while heavy footsteps shuffled past the doorway. She lifted her head, twisting it slightly to see Big Bob staring at her with his brow arched. She offered a smile, unable to explain why she was lying on the floor. He backed off without a word but his expression held all sorts of confusion on it.

With Big Bob gone, Helga flopped over onto her back, staring at the ceiling where she wouldn't have to eye the Olga pictures plaguing the walls. So, Arnold knew she was lying now. Back in the day it used to be so easy to lie to him. He would simply pass it off and say "Whatever you say, Helga" before leaving her to enjoy getting away with another nearly exposed secret. But that was changing. It changed when she confessed to him, now he knew everything about her adoration and how she tried to cover things up. Arnold knew her so well that she felt it would be impossible to see him tonight and not make it painfully obvious she still cared. Cared was an understatement, she was still obsessed!

"What was I thinking?" she groaned, "Inviting myself over to Arnold's house all of sudden…do I _want_ to embarrass myself?"

Slapping her palm against her face, she dragged it down until she practically felt her mouth being pushed out of place. Releasing and letting her face reposition itself, Helga grabbed the phone and abandoned the living room; climbing the stairs to her bedroom in view of a more private place to freak out. Shutting the door behind her, she leaned against it, lowering her eyes to the floor and weighing the cell phone in her hand, bouncing it up and down to mimic her mentally weighing out the pros and cons of going to see Arnold tonight.

"Okay Helga, let's look at the facts. Some good, strong, hard facts." Helga stated aloud to herself, striding away from her bedroom door only to turn around and walk back the way she came. It turned into pacing after two repeats of this same motion. "Fact one, you're still absolutely gaga over the guy and of course you want to see him again. Fact two, it's been four years since you've had a decent conversation and a friendship with Arnold is a better boat than no ship at all, right?" Helga turned around for another repetition around the floor. "On the other hand, Fact Three is that I'm a basket case and I'll most-likely make a fool out of myself. And Fact Four is that I consider myself a master of hiding my deepest and darkest secrets ridiculously well."

Clapping her hands on either side of her head in frustration, Helga immediately flinched in pain when she realized she was still holding her cell phone and she had slammed the device into her temple without thinking. Rubbing the sore spot, Helga tossed the phone onto her bed, tugging on her pigtails and walking in a circle just to vent the pain. Stopping herself, she sat down on the edge of her mattress and rest her hands on her thighs. "The fact is, Helga G. Pataki, you _can_ handle this. And you will. Nothing good will come out of falling over him blubbering and asking him to take you back now, will it?"

Helga reached over and picked up her ball cap from the end of her nightstand. Sighing, she pulled it on securely in place. She stood up and braced her hands on her hips; satisfied that maybe she could do this after all but only after realizing something. "One of these days, I've gotta stop talking to myself."

* * *

**Author's Note:**

**Thank you for reading.**

**Hope you enjoyed it.**


	8. Panic

Author's Note:

So, last time was short but this is a little longer.

Helga is going to visit Arnold and both of them are panicked over this reunion but it looks like they're not the only ones in a panic.

* * *

**ARNOLD**

* * *

Arnold felt some-what restless while he waited for Helga to arrive at Sunset Arms. He climbed the stairs from the first floor to the second around six times by now and each time he was hardly aware he had even done so. Meeting the rest of his old friends hadn't brought on his nerves quite like this before. But was he really nervous? For all he knew, he could have just been excited that he was going to see her again. This is unknown, but he hoped that whatever he felt would not make him look entirely foolish once she finally arrived.

While Helga was guilty of loving Arnold all of their young lives, Arnold only knew of his affections for a short while. He called them love but the arguments and disagreements shattered the weak emotion and they ended it. So if he wasn't in love with her, why the panic? Sitting himself down on one of the stairs leading to the second floor after he realized he was going down them again, Arnold leaned against the railing and watched the front door. He was ashamed of himself for being so jittery at the concept of Helga coming over. And he had no idea why.

Taking the time to think, he wondered why it was so hard to imagine talking to Helga. Mainly it was because they never really just talked before. In the past, whenever they were around one another, there was always some kind of problem to face. He often found her when she was having a crisis of her own but she had also found him when he was struggling as well. All of their encounters were either her making fun of him, causing him some form of misery, or helping him in a new adventure that always seemed to fill his childhood.

Arnold often thought about how his parents had adventures together. Maybe he had his when he was a kid and these days would be his quiet ones. The ones spent back in his old home. What made those memories stand out more, however, was Helga being a part of several of them. The youngest Pataki had always been a major part of his life, even though he hadn't noticed it at the time. And maybe that was why he was nervous. There was no adventure, no crisis, and no troubles. Only him and Helga trying to talk about how they have been living their lives. And the fact that he had little to talk about was probably what had him on the fritz.

There was a knocking at the door, drawing Arnold from his thoughts. He rose from the stairs, much more at ease than he had been before but still a little tense when he approached the old door and opened it up to see who would be standing outside. Helga stood on his stoop, hardly changed from when he had seen her at the school. Now that she was standing closer he could see that their height was matched unlike how it had been before when she was always the taller of the two. This realization drew a smile across his face before he pulled the door open wider to invite her inside.

"Hey Arnold," she greeted with a casual wave of the hand before passing him to enter the building.

"Hey, Helga." He returned, closing the door after her and the two turned to face one another in the hallway. Helga stood with her hands in her pockets, glancing around the area, clearly waiting for him to say something first. "Um, you want to head up to my room?"

"I guess so." Helga shrugged her shoulders. He indicated the stairs and led the way up them and down the hallway to the stair access to his own room. "Still hiding in the old attic I see." She commented when he pulled it down and climbed upstairs.

"It's the best."

Arnold had always been in the attic room of the boarding house and he never had any complaints about it. A few things were outdated, sure, but that was because he wasn't around to constantly keep up with the flow of technology like most teenagers his age. And Arnold never felt dissatisfied because he was outdated. Old things were great. But he did have to replace the batteries in his remote in order to get it to work again after he had arrived. He plucked said remote out of his back pocket and flipped out his sofa and indicated Helga could have a seat.

* * *

**Helga**

* * *

It was still unusual to be entering Arnold's room from the traditional doorway entrance since she had her past experiences coming through his skylights in the past. She couldn't help it that he never really invited her over at the time. She had been a complete jerk to him when they were kids so why would he invite her over? He indicated the sofa and she gave the familiar red fabric a wry smile before sitting down on it and slouching against the back, ignoring the crack between the sofa and the wall. The time for peering out of cracks and hiding from him were behind her. It was time to be a big girl and handle things much more subtly than she had before.

Watching him with casual eyes as he moved over and sat down beside her, Helga smirked slightly to herself. Arnold was still a good kid. He always sat next to girls with a polite distance in between them. It felt impersonal but at least the fact he was thinking of her comfort was good and a little touching. In her mind she freely sighed in loving bliss but mentally slapped herself shortly afterward. "So, how long is this little visit of yours this time?"

Arnold shrugged his shoulders. "My parents said I could take my time. I guess I'll be here until I think it's time to head back." He leaned forward and braced his arms across his thighs and suspending his fingers in between the gap between his legs. Helga could see he was absolutely uncertain about the timeline. It helped her relax a little more into the couch.

"Sounds like you can take your sweet time. That'll make everyone just thrilled then." The sarcasm didn't seem to fit the words but she had to sound like this if she was going to maintain the conversation casually without bursting into some strange fit that would freak him out. "I'm sure Gerald filled you in on the major details about what's going on with the old gang, right? Bet you two were running out of ink in your pens from writing each other so much."

Arnold shrugged his shoulders up a little. "Gerald told me a few things about you guys, but I'd like you to fill me in if that's okay." He looked up at her with that familiar small smile she remembered and Helga scratched at her chest, swallowing and hoping he didn't hear her heart rate kick up a few beats at the sight of it. Thumping her hands upon the cushion on either side of herself, she averted her eyes and shrugged her own shoulders.

"Well, I don't know what ol' Gerald told ya but he and Phoebs are still together and going strong. It's kind of sickening when I think about it. I'm sure they're all lovey-dovey whenever I'm not around but even when I am it's still kind of irritating how perfect they seem to be together. She's already taking classes in college on top of going to our pathetic high school and then she spends time with him, me and has room for her advanced karate classes, homework, and who knows what else. She's been on honor roll my whole life and she still has energy to do everything else."

Helga smacked her forehead. "And Gerald might be no brainiac but he's been sporting it up since junior high. All those sports we did in grade school really got to his head or something. He's programmed to be awesome at any sport with "ball" in it but spends most of his time with the basketball team. I don't pay attention to whatever else he does unless he's hanging around Phoebe."

Arnold nodded his head, he had probably already heard about tall-hair boy's obsession with playing basketball already but he asked her to report and so she did. Helga was guilty of not really caring about what her fellow classmates were doing. She shifted a little on the cushions and looked at her meager audience, crossing her arms over her chest. "I guess you didn't hear about Lila."

He blank at her, appearing puzzled. "What about Lila?"

"Putting it delicately, football head, she's dating Stinky." Helga stated, raising her eyebrow slightly; waiting for his reaction.

The teen barely even missed a beat when he raised his hands questioningly before resting his hands upon his knees. "That's good isn't it? I think they would do great together. Why the look?"

"What look?" Helga stiffened.

"The one you were giving me just now when you mentioned Lila dating Stinky. It's like you were expecting me to do something." Arnold pointed out, frowning a little as Helga averted her eyes again; pushing herself to sit up straight and twiddling her thumbs.

"Okay, I assumed you would be devastated because little miss perfect was dating him and wasn't available anymore. Face it, Arnold; it wasn't exactly a secret that you were completely gaga over her when you were kids." Helga fessed up, throwing her hands in the air. It wasn't a crime to assume anything but she really did think there would be at least a little sadness in Arnold's face once she broke the news. Maybe someone already told him about it? "I mean, you don't feel the slightest bit distressed over it? Nothing, what-so-ever?"

He shook his head, shrugging his shoulders, "Not really. I haven't liked Lila for a long time, Helga." The lack of sadness in his expression was disturbing but not so much as the sudden smirk he started to give her. Such a look was not something Helga saw often in the past. Arnold was definitely not the scheming type but he did make that face whenever he knew something that she didn't. Oh crap. "Why does it matter to you?"

Helga jumped up from the couch, staring straight ahead as she spoke. Unfortunately she squeaked at the same time that she rose up to stand. "It doesn't." Catching the higher tone in her voice, she folded her arms across her chest and suppressed the nervous babble she knew would follow if she wasn't careful. "You know I like to see the suffering of others. It's disappointing to not see you torn up over it like the first time she dumped you. I just thought I'd get a little kick out of dumping the news on ya but_ that_ was a big let-down."

Bracing her hands on her hips, Helga looked around the room and walked over to the side of his bed; surveying the shelves lining the wall over the mattress. Surveying their contents briefly it was obvious he hadn't unpacked much to make this room resemble something more lived-in than before. "Looks like you've got a lot left over in the unpacking department." She mused. That made his expression settle into a more neutral expression.

"I didn't bring back much. I was thinking about just digging through my old stuff in the closet before you called me earlier." He indicated the closet and Helga turned to it, approaching the door and pulling it open. "I haven't had a chance to look around inside yet so I don't know how it looks." He admitted, rising from the couch and peering into the opening at the same time she leaned in for a look.

"Crimeny, kid, you ever heard of spring cleaning?" she asked, noticing the boxes and the pile of old clothing on the floor. She wanted to bask in the old shirts of yesteryears and savor that sweet boyhood aroma she used to know but held her ground. If things went well she could definitely get her hands on one of those items of clothing. Patience was a virtue after all.

A slight tinge of red came across his cheeks. "I haven't really gotten around to it yet. Do you want to help me out with that? We can catch up while we work."

Helga gave a slight shrug. "Yeah I guess so. Just promise me I won't find any old underwear in there, otherwise I'm out."

* * *

**ARNOLD**

* * *

Helga's use of sarcasm hadn't changed at all over the years and he was pleased to see that she was not acting anything other than herself at this point. He had been nervous about seeing her before but managed to get over it aside from the slight awkwardness that had accompanied them upstairs since she arrived. But with that aside, Arnold was curious about Gerald and Phoebe's worries about Helga's rather bleak behavior recently. He knew he didn't see it. Then again, Helga wasn't very good at expressing her emotions. She never had been and especially in front of him.

Of course he didn't know at the time that she had been obsessively in love with him back then either. He knew that now, but she had outgrown that obsession by now. He grew relieved when she agreed to help him work on cleaning out his closet to see what he could salvage from his old life to restore his room to a more lived-in state. At least they could keep their hands busy and not worry too much about lags in conversation when they were focusing on other things.

"I'll start pulling out boxes," he stated, brushing past her and reaching inside to grab a box but a voice from below froze his hands; drawing him away from the task.

"Hey Arnold! You've got a phone call!" Grandpa called upstairs. "Sounds like some crazy person on the line!"

Arnold looked at Helga and she looked just as confused. "I'll be right back." He excused himself and headed for the door; descending downstairs to take the phone. By the time he reached the bottom step on the first floor he saw his grandfather holding the phone away from his ear, flinching away from the voice coming out of the other end before he spotted him approaching.

"Here you go, Short man, ehm…good luck." He handed it over all too eagerly before hurrying down the hallway.

Arnold sighed, holding the phone up to his ear cautiously. "Hello?

"ARNOLD! Arnold, you've gotta help me out here!" a panicked voice gasped through the phone but it was somewhat hushed and hurried like they didn't want to be overheard. "I'm freaking out!"

"Wait-Rhonda? Calm down. What's going on?"

"I'M IN HIS HOUSE, ARNOLD! _HIS_ HOUSE!"

"Whose house?"

"_HAROLD'S!_"

* * *

Author's Note:

And once again, Arnold gets another random phone call.

But what's Rhonda doing at Harold's house when she barely even went into the meat shop to see him?

Let's see if we can find out.


End file.
